No Worries
by comptine
Summary: AU Zuko has obtained an RV for the summer, and Aang, Katara, Toph, and Sokka have joined him for a nice vacation roadtrip! But of course nothing ever goes that smoothly for the gang. Ongoing story, free for anyone to join in! -PERMANENT HIATUS-
1. Fake Zuzu

Twilight Rose2

**No Worries**

**Chapter 1**

**Fake Zu-Zu**

-

"Hey Aang!" the teenager was tall; his dark hair hidden under a newsboy cap while a messenger bag was slung casually over his sweatered shoulder, banging against his jeans every second step. His head was bopping along slowly to the music being filtered into his head via a giant set of headphones. The girl that was calling him was clutching at her bag as it swung wildly over her shoulder. Her skinny jeans were being held up by her other hand; a small set of dark blue pumas were on her running feet, and her tank top was black. "Aang!" she called.

This time the voice reached past his headphones, and he stopped walking to pull them off, "Oh, hey Katara."

She took a few gasping breaths and placed her hands on her knees. "Aang, Zuko, you have to come see." She took his arm and ran in the direction she had just come from.

"Katar-whoa!" As they rounded a corner they stopped dead in their tracks. Parked on the school's student parking lot was giant motor home. Zuko was leaning out the window, looking smug at the stares he was getting. Beside the motor home, two figures were standing side by side, seemingly admiring the RV.

"I really don't see what's so great about it," said the short girl of the pair; she was wearing jeans and a pair of bright green converse. Her shirt was the same color of vibrant green, emblazoned with the words, 'Pedro Lacks Political Experience' in brown letters.

"It's like if Optimus Prime and a group of ninjas teamed up with Gandalf the White. That's how cool it is," the boy said putting hand on the motor home. He had a hand shoved into his brown pants, while a blue sweater adorned his lanky frame.

"Cool," said the girl approvingly, and when she heard Aang and Katara she turned. "Twinkle Toes, Sugar Queen. Look what Torchy here's rented for the summer."

"A motor home?" Aang said, walking towards it warily as if it was going to jump up and attack him, "Why?"

Zuko's head disappeared from the window and reappeared a few seconds later in black jeans and a red shirt on the ground. "Because, we are going on a roadtrip."

"I don't trust this Zuko," Katara whispered to Aang, "He's too nice, the real one must be locked up in a closet somewhere."

Aang laughed while Zuko stared at them, "You don't have to come, I just thought it would be fun." The group started at him. "What? I can't have fun?"

"No," Toph spoke up and walked over to Zuko, "You're the emo kid, no fun for you."

He glared at Toph before turning to the rest of them, "What else are you going to this summer?"

"He's got a point," Aang said smiling widely at the rest of the group, "can we see inside Zuko?"

Zuko nodded and the four tromped in after him, "Just try not to touch anything, it's rental."

The motor home was cramped at best; at the front were two chairs, one for the driver and one for the co-pilot. Toph immediately sat down in the drivers seat while Sokka took the co-pilot. Toph started talking into her hand, pretending it was some kind of walkie-talkie "We saw it. All craft prepare to retreat."

"You won't get another chance at this, Admiral." Replied Sokka into his own hand.

"We have no choice, General Calrissian. Our cruisers can't repel firepower of that magnitude."

"Han will have that shield down. We've got to give him more time!"

There was a slight pause then Toph yelled, "IT'S A TRAP!" and they both burst into laughter.

"While both you guys were behaving like the geeks that you are," Katara wandered over, arms crossed looking triumphant, "Aang, Zuko and I called the three bunk beds."

"Where are we going to sleep then?" asked Sokka looking crestfallen.

"You guys have to share the couch." Katara smiled wickedly and walked back to where Zuko and Aang were standing while Sokka and Toph both blushed and turned away from each other.

Above the driver's area was a small TV were Zuko had already set up his Guitar Hero, a DVD player and a small stereo system. Moving down the RV there was a couch behind the driver's seat and across from that were two chairs with a small table in between, This was followed by a small kitchen and a tiny booth where people could sit and eat. Finally, across from the three bunk beds was a small bathroom.

"Zuko what are we going to do about our clothes?" Katara asked, when she noticed the lack of storage.

"Pack light. We can stop and launder our stuff regularly." He looked vaguely excited. "Does that mean you're coming?"

Katara looked at her other three friends who were all nodding, "I guess we are."

"Great," Zuko jumped out of the RV and the others followed, "Meet me here tomorrow morning at 8:00 sharp."

They all nodded and Zuko went back into the RV, gunned it into life and pulled out of the parking lot.

"Now all we have to do is convince our parents." Sokka sighed, as he got into his car. Katara took the passenger seat, and Toph sat in the back. Aang waved his goodbye before putting on his headphones and starting his short walk home.

* * *

A/N:

Well here it is! A collab project between me and SuperBleh11! There's more information about it in the next chapter so keep on reading!


	2. Permission

SuperBleh11

**No Worries**

**Chapter 2**

**Permission**

-

1His feet shuffled nervously against the beige carpet as he peered around the doorframe. Katara's hand grazed his shoulder, causing him to jump slightly as his shifty blue eyes focused upon the calm figure of Hakoda peacefully turning the pages of a paperback novel. He eased backwards and glanced at his sister, hoping to find some sort of mercy in her gaze, but her face was focused and determined, cutting his hope of a reprieve off at the stem.

"Just do it!" she whispered, "Don't you want to go on the trip?"

"Of course I do!" he snapped, gesturing angrily to overcome the softness of his voice, "But you're going, too! Why can't _you_ask him? You're the daughter! He has to listen to you!"

"Man up, Sokka!" she spat condescendingly, pushing him lightly on the shoulder, "What would Toph say, if she saw you whining about it like this?"

Now it was Sokka's turn to furrow his brows. A cursory snort escaped his nostrils, casting the hot perfume of his previous meal into her face. It was a cheap shot, and they both knew it, but the matter was at hand and Sokka knew he had to act.

A deep, cooling breath flowed through Sokka's lungs as he prepped himself for the dive. His tanned hand ran through his hair as he nervously rounded the corner, walking quickly so as to make his entrance nonchalant A pang of irritation crossed him as he realized that Katara was planning on remaining hidden; his arm shot outwards and gripped her hand instantaneously, pulling her out with him. She resisted initially, but as the artificial light of the ceiling fan struck her body, she relaxed.

The ruffling sound of their tennis shoes dragging on the carpet caught Hakoda's attention, pulling his eyes from the taciturn black text of the page onto the nervous faces of his children. A dark brown eyebrow raised upwards smoothly; not a gesture of indifference or confusion, but rather the inquisitorial act of a wary authoritarian. Sokka's Adam's apple leapt upwards as he swallowed, exposing his fear and his trepidation as he summoned up the dregs of his courage into his speech.

"Dad," he started, opening his hands up and clasping them together, "I...that is, me and Katara, have to ask you something."

"Ok," Hakoda began warily, setting the book down. With a shuffle of cloth, his arms folded over his chest, as he stared predatorily at his children. Sokka's speech faltered under the impenetrable gaze of his father, sparking out like a dying match; Katara kick-started him with an elbow to the ribs.

"We...me and Katara," he qualified quickly, "were wondering if we could...maybe, go on an RV trip this summer...with some friends of ours." His eyes flicked back and forth from the deep brown leather of the couch to the piercing blue of his father's gaze, as he anxiously awaited the response.

"An RV trip?" Hakoda asked, genuinely surprised, "Like what kind of an RV trip?"

"Umm... a cross-country RV trip," Sokka explained cautiously, carefully wording his sentences to avoid negativity, "Zuko has one...and he invited us to go along with him. He wants to wind down south, and explore the country a little bit."

Hakoda's chin came to rest upon his fist thoughtfully, as he leaned forward. His fingers scratched up against the thick black hair of his beard, giving him a nearly wolfish appearance as he mulled the issue over in his head.

"Mm," he grunted. "And how long would you be gone?"

"Umm...a month," Sokka squeaked. The edges of his mouth raised up worriedly, exposing glimmers of white teeth. Hakoda began to open his mouth to speak; a gesture that took forever, but an unlikely interruption in the form of Katara's small voice sliced through his thoughts.

"Iroh's chaperoning."

Only sheer force of will prevented Sokka's eyes from darting sideways at his sister's dangerous lie. He held Hakoda's gaze as it shifted over to the careful form of Katara, standing nervously to the left of him. The tension seeped into the room like a poisonous gas, eating away at their ability to think and their ability to speak, as they worked tersely to avoid unnecessary movement.

Suddenly, Hakoda's laughter rang out through the room, melting the silence away. His eyes glinted jovially, bringing an uncharacteristic youthfulness to his cragged, worn face. He slapped his hand down against his knee and leaned forward even more, causing his children to start and back away.

"You know, kids," he began warmly, "I've always thought you could use a little adventure in your lives. When I was your age...well, that's another story. But I think this is a great idea. When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow," Katara piped in optimistically; Sokka grimaced, but their father just laughed all the more.

"Hah, fine then! Tomorrow it is!" he smirked. Sokka smiled warily, but he couldn't help but feel that Hakoda's gaze held some secret maturity, some enigmatic knowledge of the adventuring life that came solely from experience. It sent a chill down his spine.

* * *

The headlights of his car traced circles through the air as he pulled into the parking lot, deserted and empty. The warm summer dawn greeted the group as they pried themselves out of the cramped hatchback, struggling through the foul moods of an early morning to wave happily at the ecstatic form of Zuko.

Toph Bei Fong stretched languidly as her feet hit the ground. A drawn-out yawn escaped her lips as she planted her hands in the small of her back, pushing her chest forward with several loud, organic pops. The pale green duffel bag lurched out of the back seat with the characteristic whine of vinyl as she turned her head and spat lazily.

The clear pool of saliva glistened upon the faded black pavement, catching Aang's eyes just in time to prevent him stepping in it. He cast a nervous smile at Toph before he carefully edged his elevated foot around the stained ground.

"Great to see you're so excited," Sokka ribbed sarcastically, as he slammed the trunk shut and walked over to her. Her ears tingled slightly at the dull scraping noise of his feet passing over the gritty asphalt; a mischievous smirk adorned her small face as she leaned up against the cold metal of his car.

"Hey, Sokka," she began, listening carefully for the disappearing steps of their friends. He raised an eyebrow at her tone; her voice seemed smaller and a little more worried.

"What's up?" he responded, as he reached downward and adjusted his bag over his shoulder. Katara's sugary voice echoed across the parking lot, filled with pleasantries and greetings.

"Listen, don't say anything," she began warily, "but the quicker we can get out of the province, the better. We might not want to dawdle too much."

Sokka's bags hit the ground with a loud, dull thump as a thrill of fear shot up his spine. His eyes widened dramatically as he said, "Toph, what did you do?"

"Shh!" she hissed at him, scooping a bag off the ground, "It's not so much what I did as what I didn't do. I knew my parents wouldn't let me go on this trip...so I didn't exactly tell them."

The thrill of fear turned into an edge of panic as his jaw flung open. Weird, cursory stutters came out of his mouth as he struggled to find the words to say, but it seemed that this new information had completely shut his brain down.

"What...you did _what?_" was all that he could work out.

"Look, they're already at work, so it'll probably take them until about six or seven to notice I'm gone," she reasoned, "If we can get out of the province by then, I'll just call them and tell them what's going on, and they won't call the cops or anything. Probably."

"_Toph!_" Sokka snapped, slapping his forehead with the palm of his hand, "Do you realize how much trouble you're going to get in to! They'll call all our parents! We barely got our dad to agree to this as it is!"

"They won't call your parents if I don't tell them whose going," she pointed out, grinning evilly, "See? Don't worry about it, I've thought this whole thing out."

"You.." Sokka began incredulously, but Aang's loud voice carrying over the parking lot cut them off.

"Are you guys coming?"

"Yeah, we'll be right there!" Toph hollered, and before Sokka could say anything, she walked to the monolithic RV, standing out against the flat horizon of the school like a huge white monument.

"Your shirt is awesome," Zuko noted as she approached. Aang peered around his massive backpack to get a better look.

"What does BAMF mean?" he asked.

"You'll find out Twinkle Toes," she punched him in the shoulder, "You'll find out."

* * *

**A/N:**

And so goes my feeble attempt at writing in the past tense! Lol, this is why I usually stick to my nice comfortable first person present, but hey, I hope you enjoyed it! Thanks mucho to TwilightRose2 for coming up with the ideas on this story!

Just to refresh everyone's memory, this is completely open for ANY writer to join in and write a chapter! If you're interested, please, just shoot TwilightRose2 or myself a PM, and we'll get you in! We're looking for both Zutarians and Kataangers, because it'll make for some awesome ship warfare in this story, so please, help your ship out, ha-ha! There are a couple of little rules we have, but they're pretty simple. Basically, it's just that you can't write anything definitive for any ship (other than Tokka), which means no kissing, no admissions of love, or anything like that. Hinting is what it's all about!

And even if you're not into the whole shipping thing, feel free to help out and write a chapter! The more the merrier in this thing and we'd love to see it take off!

Phew, that was a lot! Well, TwilightRose2 has the next chapter, and I've got the one after that, but after that point, we're really hoping to have some more of you talented authors in rotation. It looks to be a fun/hilarious adventure so far! Keep reading!

Superbleh11


	3. TDUSADFFFL RV

A/N: Sorry, sorry, sorry!! I had major block with this chapter, I mean...yeah but I finally got it out... sorry it isn't much but I still love it just because they have the 'Cake is not a lie' argument. And I'm so sorry SuperBleh that I posted this without telling you but I needed to get it up and I think it's about 1:00 am where you are so...

* * *

Twilight Rose2

**No Worries**

**Chapter 3**

**The Dreaded Ultra Super Awesome Delta Foxy Force Five Limited RV**

-

The sun was just rising over the mountains as the kids piled into the RV, Zuko was already sitting in the driver's seat forcing a pair of keys into the ignition. Aang took the co pilot's seat while Katara took a small chair beside the door. Toph and Sokka both jumped on the couch. Everyone settled in to spots and shifted their attention to Zuko. He looked a bit nervous the key slide into the hole.

"Ready?" Zuko asked slightly apprehensively to the rest of the group as the motor gunned into life. They were quiet for a moment, looking at each other for answers.

"Ready." Agreed the other four, Zuko nodded and after a bit of gear grinding they were off tooling down the downtown road of their little town. No one else was on the road, well it was pretty early for a Sunday but still. A couple of early risers were running on the sidewalk, a dog occasionally padding beside them, tongue lolling out and barking happily as they had their 'walkies'.

"WAIT!" Katara's yell echoed through the tiny RV. Zuko screeched to a halt and Sokka flew off the couch landing on his face on the floor. Toph laughed and Aang, holding back a grin, offered his hand to Sokka how took it gratefully rubbing his head.

"What is it Katara?" Zuko was turned around in his seat looking frightened. His foot was still pressed down on the break even though he had shifted the gear into 'park'.

"We need a name." she had slamming a fist down on her chair's arm. Zuko moaned and turned back the steering wheel, a few seconds later the RV was puttering down the road. Sokka stared at his sister as though concerned for her mental state while Aang just looked confused.

"We have names, I'm Toph Beifong, that's Zuko Sozin, Aang Gyago and Sokka Kirima," Toph held out a hand, smiling slyly, "Nice to meet you!"

Katara glared at Toph before continuing, "A name for the RV." she said it as if it was the most obvious thing ever.

"Why does it need a name?" asked Sokka.

"It'll make it a lot more fun! I think we should call it Delta Force!" Katara said, clapping her hands together smiling widely.

"No," Toph interjected, "We should call Foxy Force Five." her Pulp Fiction obsession was still in full force even though it had been two months since she had seen the film.

"You're both wrong," Aang stepped in, ignoring the glares he was getting from Toph and Katara, "The Dreaded RV."

Sokka jumped in, keen on having his opinion taking into account, "Ultra Awesome!" Toph snorted at this and Katara resisted a facepalm.

"You're all wrong," Zuko was driving, his eyes however not on the road but focused on the four in the back, "It should be Super Limited."

The group did their favourite activity for the next hour. Arguing.

"Delta Force!"

"The Dreaded RV!"

"Foxy Force Five!"

"Ultra Awesome!"

"Super Limited!"

"What kind of a name is that!?"

"A super limited one!"

"No it's the lamest name! The stuff between my toes could think up a better name."

"Oh she got you there!"

"Shut up! At least my name makes sense unlike 'Ultra Awesome'."

"Ultra Awesome is the best name known to mankind! So you can just shut it."

For a while the five just argued, playfully ripping at each other while the RV trundled out of the town and out into open highway. They were thoroughly ignoring the beautiful countryside as the argument built and crackled.

"Wait everyone just hold the hell on!" Toph's voice cut through the disagreement like a knife. Everyone shut up immediately and looked at the blind girl, "I've got a plan."

"What is it?" they asked together.

"We'll call it, The Dreaded Ultra Super Awesome Delta Foxy Force Five Limited RV." She crossed her arms, "unless anybody has a problem with that?"

And that was the end of the argument.

The ride from then on was long and boring, Zuko wasn't letting them turn on the TV as they had only been on the road for five hours and should probably save the games and movies for when they're really bored. So the RV went unnaturally quiet, Zuko focusing on the driving, Sokka sleeping on the couch, Katara reading a book, Aang draped over a chair, staring out at the passing highway and Toph listening to her Ipod, feet propped up on the small coffee table.

"We're here." Zuko pulled into a small camping site the moon had finally risen. As the motor died the rest of the group seemed to wake from their stupor. Katara stood, looking outside before yawning. Aang stood up, rubbing his eye tiredly as he wandered over to the bunk beds.

"Finally." Toph jumped up from her chair, burping and stretching, "I'm going outside for a bit of fresh air, anybody interested?"

"I'm coming." Sokka jumped off his chair and walked down the small staircase to follow Toph. A breeze greeted them as they closed the door, the stars were perfectly visible in the cloudless night. The moon shone the brightest a full circle of light shining down on the world. Toph and Sokka leaned against the RV, Toph's arms crossed and Sokka's hands shoved into his pockets. "The cake is not a lie?" Sokka asked suddenly as he stared at Toph. Her shirt, black with white letter, said 'The Cake is not a lie.'

"Yeah," Toph pulled the bottom of her shirt, stretching it and looking down, "You know, from Portal?"

"Course I know Portal," Sokka said, "But the cake was a lie."

"No." Toph stared intently at him, "There is clearly cake at the end."

"How do you know?" he poked her in the chest, "You can't even see!"

"I listened to Zuko play it, and he clearly said, 'Hey! There was cake!'"

Sokka's voice was slowly rising along with Toph's, "I played it to! There was no cake!"

"Shows how much you know!" Toph right in Sokka's face.

But the next words caught in Sokka's throat as he noticed just how close his best friend was. Mere inches, he could almost imagine what would happen if he dared todo what his brain was telling him to do. Damn hormones.

"Will you two SHUT THE HELL UP AND GO TO BED!?" Zuko's head appeared out a tiny window in the side of the RV, after his voice echoed through the campground, sending a few birds from their nests he slammed the window muttering something about idiots who can't shut up when it's time to sleep.

"C'mon," Toph walked around Sokka's still form to the door, "We better go inside."

"Yeah inside." Sokka shook his head and followed his best friend. As he took the first step up the stairs a though halted his progress.

He and Toph. Were sharing. A bed.

_Fun times._ Sokka thought to himself grimly before closing the door as quietly as possible.

* * *

A/N:

Okay so not the best of chapters but...life goes on and I'll get over my writer's block!

Anyway, SuperBleh and I were talking and decided that certain requirements must be met every chapter.

So I'm just gonna go over the rules really quick.

1) No definite action for Kataang/Zutara this means no confession, kisses or hate speeches. HINTING ONLY, oh and any super obvious hints we might screw you over the next chapter so be careful how far you go. Only SuperBleh and myself may have any definite say in Kataang and Zutarian matter of this fic.

2) Toph's shirt has to say something new every chapter, for example in the first one it says 'Pedro Lacks Political Experience' and so each time it needs a new saying. Anything works! Just try and keep it clean.

Those are the only two rules! Easy peasy! Only one more chapter and then ThumperMiggles is up, if you want to know where you stand in the order, check out my profile!


	4. Losing The Game

SuperBleh11

**No Worries**

**Chapter 4**

**Losing _The Game_  
**

The flowing green of the couch was cast in the pale, effervescent glow of the moonlight as Sokka fell backwards upon it. His steel blue eyes flickered to the staunch, stoic form of his bunkmate, flicking the raven black hair from her eyes and somehow making herself seem indomitable. With a nervous, flustered sigh, he asked the question that he knew needed to be asked.

"So...how do you want to do this?"

He couldn't help but be thankful that she was blind, and couldn't see the crimson flush explode across his cheeks. He could have sworn that he caught the slight glimpses of a blush in the slight blue light, but her face stayed so calm and unreadable that he couldn't be sure.

"How do I want to do what, Snoozles?" she asked evasively.

His shoulders sagged slightly, and another tired sigh escaped his lips. She wasn't going to make this easy.

"You know...there's only one couch, and two of us," he pointed out, "How are we gonna sleep?"

For the first time that night, Toph cracked a smile.

"With you on the ground," she replied simply.

He chuckled slightly, glad for the moment of levity, but was quickly silenced as he cast his eyes upon her smirking face.

"Toph..."

But that was as far as he got, before the sole of her heavy tennis shoe jammed into the soft part of his side. He fell catastrophically to the ground, clutching his abdomen as she stretched out languidly, curling her pale, thin arms underneath her head and kicking her shoes to the floor. The contented smile that became etched across her face caused sparks of irritation in his stomach; his fingers tightened against the coarse woolen carpet as his eyes narrowed.

"Toph! You can't..."

"Yes I can," she finished contentedly. Sokka could hear the happy growl of a catlike purr in her voice.

"What if we..."

"Nope."

"But..."

"Nope."

"I could just..."

"Sorry."

A low grunt came out of his throat, accompanying some muttered curses as he gathered himself up. The leather chair remained; maybe an uncomfortable position, but Sokka was tired, and the smooth, cushioned seating seemed to call to him, beckoning him into the soft folds and easy lines.

He eased his head back against the rest, pulling the lever out and leaning the mock Lazy chair backwards into the reclining position. The leather nuzzled against him softly, bringing him into a quiet embrace as the edges of sleep slowly enveloped him.

"Why are you holding your head like that?"

"Shut up, Aang," Sokka replied moodily. The powerful crick in his neck had fringed on the unbelievable as he had regained consciousness that morning; just pulling his head off of the hard crinkled leather had been an exercise of willpower. Now he found that whenever he attempted to pry his head from a forty-five degree angle with the ground, his muscles would tighten angrily and his spine would pop.

Aang's childish laughter shot around the cabin as he poked the preoccupied Sokka hard in the side of the head. The poor injured Kirima could only groan angrily as the sore tendrils of pain fired up and down his worn neck, causing his fingers to grip the steering wheel tighter, and the plastic of the chair to squeak.

"You sure you don't mind driving today?" Zuko asked. His eyes drifted from the road ahead towards the neighboring driver, idly scanning the blurred views whizzing by them. Something about being on the road, away from the cities, really appealed to Zuko; the way the scenery changed and the landscapes shifted calmed and soothed him. The stress could pour from his lanky frame as he absorbed the beauty of the bits of life that passed their way. Every new scene that accompanied the crests of the next hill was inspiring, and more than that, tranquil.

"Yeah, no worries, Zuko," Sokka replied unconvincingly. His screaming neck had dampened his mood considerably.

"How long is Toph going to sleep?" Katara asked, clearly annoyed as she ran her fingers through her deep brown hair. Drool leaked from the corner of Toph's mouth and ran down the length of her pillow, as her chest rose and fell softly with her heavy breathing. Her hair had become spectacularly disheveled throughout the night; it ran out in all different directions, obscuring her head and shoulders with an almost impenetrable web of tangled black tendrils.

Aang happily came to stand beside Katara, a mischievous grin splitting his cheeks as he recognized the fun to be had. His grey eyes brightened with a glint of childish immaturity, rank with delight and oozing with excitement. Katara chuckled outwardly as he nudged her in the side, rolling her eyes jokingly at the sudden energy and radiance he exuded.

"I got this, Katara," he whispered, leaning over the poor unsuspecting Toph.

She smirked warmly, and the brush began to flow through her hair again.

The massive iron pot and accompanying ladle were out of the cabinets in a flash as Aang prepared for his momentous move. Zuko, curious as to the situation, poked his head around the side of his massive co-pilot's chair; his eyes widened dramatically as he realized what was about to happen. Sokka turned to look at him and felt a rush of fear climb through his spine as he saw the golden irises dramatically open, telling him what Zuko was about to say before he could even say it.

"Fire in the hole!"

The monstrous cacophony of metal crashing against metal filled the RV, rebounding against the walls with head-splitting force as Aang brought the ladle against the side of the heavy cast pot with all the strength his thin arms could muster. It was all Sokka could do to prevent from jumping and pulling the RV off the side of the road, as he intently watched the painted yellow lines of the pavement fly by.

"Aang!_Aang!_" Zuko screamed over the din, "That's enough!"

As if on cue, the rhythmic clanging ceased, as Aang glanced over to the couch to admire his handy-work.

Toph lay unmoving, still fast asleep.

Aang, shocked and disappointed, let out a short, stuttered snort of indignation. The pot and ladle fell lifelessly from his hands as his eyes narrowed angrily, disturbed by his prank's lack of effect. Toph snored peacefully, rolling over and clutching her pillow tightly as she wormed her way farther into the couch.

The pot slid noisily against the ground as Aang gathered it up, flipping it idly back and forth in his hand as another idea came to him. He nonchalantly strolled back to the kitchen, whistling softly as though nothing had happened, calmly approaching his culinary destination. With a soft squeak the faucet cranked on; the pot gathered the cool water as it flowed from the spigot and foamed against the black cast iron.

"Aang, you can't be about to do that," Katara admonished, re-appearing from the back room, "She'll kill you. She'll kill all of us!"

His face turned to meet her ocean-blue eyes, resonating with a fierce determination that spoke of a toughness beyond his years. The corners of his mouth lowered resolutely as the skin between his eyes scrunched together, creating a mask of courage and valiance that sent a small chill down Katara's back.

"Sometimes, there are things worth risking," he replied, and in a flash, it happened.

The water arced electrically across the room, streaming in slow motion as the light shone through the open windows and glittered extravagantly through the flying droplets. Katara could feel the scene go in slow motion as she watched the first bead of liquid explode against Toph's green shirt, followed by the warlike rain of thousands more, attacking her still form like a charging army on a battlefield.

And just as quick as it had begun, the deed was finished. The water had transformed into a dark stain that completely coated her, causing her wild and untamed hair to retreat meekly into gravity's embrace and fall around her face. She stirred slightly; both Katara and Aang tensed up nervously as thoughts of massive explosions of rage and violence filled their imaginations, but, without so much as a peep, she fell back into the soft snores of her peaceful rest.

Katara let out a long, drawn-out sigh of relief, but Aang was bustling with indignation.

"How can she still be asleep?" he shrieked angrily, smacking his forehead, "What do we have to do to wake her up? It's like trying to wake a rock up!"

Katara was about to reply when Sokka's voice interrupted her.

"Is that what you're trying to do?" he asked, not bothering to turn around, "You dummies don't know anything about how Toph works!"

His laughter pealed annoyingly through the cabin, accompanying the low, nasal snores emanating from Toph. The carpet crunched underneath Aang's feet as he stalked through the RV, angrily clenching his fists as the frustration seeped through.

"Oh, what, like you're some kind of expert?" he seethed, grabbing Sokka's tortured head and ruthlessly cranking it to the side. Sokka yelped bestially as his neck screamed in protest, struggling to keep his eyes on the road as Aang agilely evaded his retaliatory grab for him. Sokka's laughter was replaced by Zuko's as all sorts of curses buzzed from his mouth.

"No, you're just stupid!" he responded angrily, "And I'll bet you ten dollars that I can wake her up in one go!"

"Oh, you're on," Aang fired back. "Go ahead! Wake her up!"

Sokka sneered malevolently, and immediately started barking orders. "Somebody get me her iPod and the iAir! I'm gonna show you losers how to get Toph moving!"

Aang immediately rushed to comply, gathering up the gadgetry from the table and rushing it over to the Pilot's seat. Zuko immediately began to hook the contraptions up to the car radio, wiring the media devices together with the deft, practiced motions of an experienced music fan, before looking at Sokka for a cue.

"Volume won't work, Sokka," Aang informed him, as he leaned over the side of the chair to leer over the perceived futile efforts. Katara laughed at the pair before disappearing into the bathroom, moving to hide from the impending doom and destruction.

"It's got nothing to do with that," Sokka chided him in a sing-song voice, snatching the iPod from Zuko's busy hands, and immediately going to work upon it. "This hooks up to your speakers, right?"

"Yeah," Zuko responded, nonplused. He turned to look at the screen of the little device, but Sokka adroitly shifted away, out of his view. The soft organic clicks of his fingers on the plastic drilled through the silence, before he became apparently satisfied with a certain song. A sudden loud note projected through the massive speakers adorning the RV's walls, causing Aang and Zuko to start in surprise.

The tone became evident as it drew to its full power, solid in its one solitary, powerful pitch, unwavering and proud. The bagpipe drone hummed, resplendent in it's national, unique glory, obnoxious in its nasally tone, before Sokka's loud, off-pitch voice joined in with the lead singer's haughty one.

"Face down in the gutter won't admit defeat, though his clothes are soiled and black," he sang, mirroring the barely contained, Bostonite voice of the vocalist.

As if on cue, and completely in time with the beat, Toph shot up, eyes hidden amongst the sopping wet hair, clothes askew and soaked. Her voice rang out an octave higher, though more on pitch, yet somehow mirroring the raw punkish disaffection of the music.

"He's a big strong man with a child's mind, don't you take his booze away. _Hey!_"

Aang was about to speak around his fallen jaw when a sudden wall of distorted guitar flew from the speakers, catching him amidst their lightening fast rhythm and thunderous powerchords.

In a sudden catastrophic crash, Katara fell out of the bathroom, hair turned out and an angry expression on her face. She furiously scooped her twisted brush from the ground, before attempting to shout over the din.

"What_is_that? Are those _bagpipes?_" she screamed into the wall of noise, but no one could hear her. The heads of both Toph and Sokka were rhythmically pounding forward, punching the air violently as though fighting with it, screaming the lyrics as loud as their vocal chords would allow. Aang was staring obliquely at the scene, mouth agape, while Zuko was laughing hysterically into the side of his co-pilot's chair.

"Will he listen, no he won't that's all she wrote, he'll be dead before the daylight shines!" Toph shrieked, as Katara trudged her way forward, fighting against the blasting rhythms as though they were hurricane winds.

"But the thoughts and prayers!" Sokka's voice carried with the flowing vibrations, cascading past her ears and onwards.

"Of a million strong!" Toph's voice, smaller now, still caught into the recesses of her mind, before the pair of them together belted, "Might _keep_ this _fool_ from dyin'!"

Katara pounced forward suddenly, crashing against the side of his pilot's seat as she snaked her arm through his, snatching the iPod and ripping it away from his tightened fingers. She frantically punched the square "Stop" key, hitting it several times for good measure, until the music faded into a powerful ringing in all of their ears. She could suddenly hear her heavy breathing, and the rumbling of the engine, and the frantic laughter of Zuko up front.

"Aw, why'd you turn it off?" Sokka whined, quickly peering around the edge of his seat.

"What...what the hell was that?" Katara spat back, shaking the iPod feverishly in her hands.

"Um, I believe that was Punk Rock," Zuko answered blithely, casually rubbing his shell-shocked ears, "But hey, at least we know that the speakers work!"

"Why am I all wet?" Toph asked suddenly.

The slamming door caused all heads to turn as Toph emerged from the back room, freshly adorned in dry clothes. Without a word, Katara stood up and stormed back into the bedroom, furiously going through her belongings in order to finish her mandatory primping procedures, while Toph smirked and immediately planted her butt in a chair and her feet on the closest table. Wordlessly, the buds were forced into her ears, and immediately began accosting the rest of her senses with the pure unbridled power of rock music.

Several songs in, Katara exited the back room, finally finished with what had turned into over an hour of work, as she became apparently satisfied with her appearance. Her blue clothes rustled softly as she casually sat down on the couch, carefully avoiding the notorious wet patch and brushing her hand through her deep brown hair. The tonal noise of Sokka's whistling carried through the cabin, melding poorly with the muffled rhythms and buzzes emanating from Toph's iPod, creating a settling atmosphere as Aang sat down in front of Katara.

"Finally done, huh?" he asked casually. His eyes began to dance furtively between her and the cabin, as an aura of awkwardness blanketed over the pair. She smiled slightly, her good nature returned by his childishness, and was about to speak when Zuko's shouting voice cut through the dull humming of the RV's powerful engine.

"Here! Sokka, here!" he announced, gesturing to some scene outside of the cabin that was blocked from the pair's view.

"There?" Sokka asked incredulously, "Are you sure? _That's_ what you were telling me about earlier?"

"Yeah, that's it exactly!" he announced excitedly, tapping the dashboard for added effect. Sokka shrugged nonchalantly, and with a lurch, the RV turned and slowed. Toph's feet

slid off the top of the table, a victim of the newly enacted forces, causing her to sit up and jerk the headphones out of her ears.

"What's going on?" she asked angrily, as she wrapped the cords around the machine, "Why are we stopping?"

"Zuko wants to stop here," Sokka announced, as the nose of the RV fully dipped down and the monolith fully halted. A loud cranking noise sounded from the front of the cabin as he forced the gear into 'Park', jamming the keys forward and jerking them out of the socket with a metallic chime.

Aang pried himself out of his seat, leaning backwards into a long stretch, as he caught sight of Toph's characteristic green shirt in his periphery. An inquisitive eyebrow shot up as he turned to take a better look, casting his stare up and down to make sure he was reading it correctly. As Toph pocketed the iPod and took a step towards the door, he asked, "What's 'the Game'?"

Her sightless, milky expression glanced in his general direction. "You just lost, Twinkletoes."

He opened his mouth, as if to say something, but the confusing way she had replied caught his voice before it could exit. Instead, the eyebrow returned to its normal height, and his expression took on a slightly defeated air.

"I don't like this game," he observed.

* * *

**A/N:**

And so it begins! Next up is ThumperMiggles, make sure y'all all come back to read her chapter! I'm curious to see what she does with the opening I've left; I'm looking forward to reading it!

I've got a poll up on my profile (I'm Superbleh11 for those of you with short memories) as to which ship (excluding Tokka, which must always win) will prevail in our fic here! So go look and vote, if you want a bit of say in which ship wins!

Haha my story's got a bit of an Easter egg in it, if you can tell me in a Review the name of the song that Toph and Sokka were rocking out to, and the band that plays it, you win...umm... a PM from me telling you what a great job you did! Haha! There we go!

Anyways, now the other authors start coming in! To everyone that's on the list, thank y'all so much for volunteering. We were really really happy with all the sign-ups we got, and we hope that y'all enjoy this as much as we are!

Keep Reading!

Superbleh11

Twilight Rose2 here!

I just wanted to mention that everyone should take another look at the list of authors on my profile, as it has been redone. CHECK IT OUT!

Oh and good luck Thumpers!


	5. Bathroom Break and Poison Plant

ThumperMiggle

**No Worries**

**Chapter 5 **

**Bathroom Break and Poison Plant **

-

Zuko emerged from the vehicle, seemingly pleased with where he had picked to stop. Aang and Katara, who both raised an eyebrow quizzically at his odd choice, followed him.

"A park?" said Sokka, finally coming out of the RV.

"Why are we stopping at a park?" A voice called from behind Sokka. Toph stepped out to stand beside Sokka and repeated, "Hello? Why the heck are we stopping at a park?" Zuko gave a look that seemed sheepish, and said,

"I'll be right back." He quickly ran off without an explanation. With all previous curiosity dissipating, Katara said with a smirk, "Probably needed to go bathroom."

It turned out, she was quite right.

"Might as well enjoy ourselves while we're here thought, right?" Aang grinned, mostly because he thought the concept of Zuko stopping at a place because he needed to go bathroom.

Katara nodded, and sighed. She walked over to a tree, and flopped down in the shade. Aang followed, leaving Toph and Sokka behind. The park was rather pretty. It had patches of multicoloured flowers scattered on the sea of green grass. It smelled fresh, and there were little glittering diamonds of water still held in the folds of the plants, most likely from the morning sprinklers. There were little birds perched in some of the large trees that surrounded the path, chirping their little songs like there was no tomorrow. Though to a person like Toph, birds could get rather annoying. Especially since her hearing was amplified thanks to her blindness. She groaned, and plopped down on the grass. Sokka laughed, and joined her.

"Aw, c'mon, Toph. It can't be THAT bad!"

Toph straightened up as fast as she could, and said,

"Sokka ISN'T complaining? The world must be coming to an end! The apocalypse is coming!"

Sokka rolled his eyes, and said that instead, they could explore the park while waiting for Zuko.

"Katara, my cell is on if you need me. We're going somewhere," He yelled to his sister. Without giving Toph time to react, he practically dragged her to who-knows-where.

"Wow!" Sokka exclaimed, "There's a creek here!" Toph huffed.

"So you practically pull my arm off to see a huge puddle of water. Big whoop."

Sokka narrowed his eyes.

"Not 'big whoop', Toph. HUGE whoop."

"Who cares about a bunch of water?"

"Why don't you care?"

"It's just a bunch of water, Meathead?"

"So? It's an AWESOME bunch of water!"

"You suck!"

"You suck more!"

"You suck more than more?"

"What?"

They both looked at each other, blinked twice and bursted out laughing.

"Wanna go down and explore?" Sokka asked.

"You bet."

A few minutes later, Sokka decided it was time to leave the 'discovery'.

"Toph, let's go!"

Toph made her way through the squishy mud, which seemed to sneeze and gurgle with every step.

They both made their way up the slippery incline, at times their feet giving way underneath them, causing them to fall in the sticky substance, spraying wetness all over the fronts of their shirts.

With no warning, Toph's hand slipped halfway up, causing her to fall on her front, slide all the way back down the hill, and land to what would have hurt had it not been for a patch of reddish-green leaves.

"Aw, dang. Lucky this plant thing was there, though."

Sokka carefully made his way back down the hill to almost gasp in horror. "Toph... Don't come anywhere near me."

"Why the heck not, Snoozles?"

"That 'plant thing'..."

"What of it? Spit it out already!"

"Toph, you landed in poison oak."

A loud yell could be heard, echoing across the park, making almost everybody's heads turn in confusion.

"WHAT?!"

* * *

-

**ThumperMiggles' A/N**: Mkay. Please, nobody kill me for this chapter. Sorry, I don't (and never will / have had) a spellchecker or grammar check. I don't know if this is completely right. I also don't have a "built in synonyms thing" like in Word. So please refrain from burning me alive. Also, I couldn't resist the poison oak. I have it right now, and TRUST ME. It sucks. XD


	6. When Life Gives you Lemons

Twilight Rose2

**No Worries**

**Chapter 6**

**When Life Gives you Lemons**

-

"TOPH!?" Katara dropped the book she was reading when Sokka and Toph emerged from the forest. Toph's rash was spreading up her arms, though thankfully her face and neck were normal. Sokka followed behind her, careful not to touch her, "What the hell!?"

"Funny story," Toph replied dryly, "I fell in poison oak."

"Okay everyone," Katara yelled, and Aang and Zuko appeared looking vaguely put off by the redness of Toph, "Back in the RV, we need a pharmacy and a lemon."

"A what?"

"A lemon," Katara sighed, "It's an old remedy for this kind of stuff. Zuko, let's go." She grabbed his arm dragging him onto the RV and practically pushing him into the driver's seat. Aang, Toph and Sokka followed behind while the RV puttered into life.

"Katara?" Toph asked as her hand drifted towards her arm, "I'm itchy."

"Well next time you decided to fall into a plant, maybe you'll think twice," she turned to Sokka while swatting Toph's hands to keep them from scratching, "Sokka, get me a lemon."

"Why in the world would I have packed a lemon?" Zuko asked from the front seat.

"You didn't," said Katara, "I did, good thing I was put in charge of food or else we would've been living off chips. Now Toph, take off your shirt."

"WHAT!?"

"Your shirt, you've probably got a rash on your back." Toph didn't move and Katara sighed exasperatedly, "It's not like we've never seen your bra before Toph. Shirt off now. Sokka I need that lemon."

Sokka passed her the lemon and she start cutting it up while Toph struggled with her shirt. Sokka's eyes wandered over to her crimson back, the strap of a green bra stood out clearly from the red. He blushed slightly and, mostly to distract himself, said, "What else can I do?"

"Get a wet cloth, and start washing Toph." Katara instructed between the slices of the knife.

"What?" the question was echoed from both Toph and Sokka.

"You heard me, do it now." Katara put the knife down, went to the fridge and grabbed a jug of milk.

Sokka did as he was told, finding a cloth and running it under the tap. He walked over to Toph, who was sitting quietly, a hand casually itching her arm. He took her hand, to stop her scratching, and started washing her, "Is it too hot?" he asked, trying to ignore the fact that his best friend had no shirt on.

"No it's fine," she replied, a blush reddening her face and adding to her overall appearance of radish.

"Zuko! There's one!" Aang suddenly yelled, pointing at a building, "Quick! Into that lane!" the RV wobbled violently and everyone grabbed something to steady himself or herself. Toph grabbed Sokka's shoulder, out of instinct, and let go quickly once she realized that it was his shoulder.

"Aang run inside and get cream, Zuko here," she passed him the jug of milk, "Pour Toph a glass."

"Why?"

"Because it's another treatment." She said before hurrying past him into their tiny closet and looking for something, "Toph, give me your shirt." Toph groped around for it, before tossing it to Katara who threw it into the bathroom.

"What's the lemon for?" asked Sokka.

"For Toph," Katara pulled out a black shirt and threw it onto the couch beside Toph before picking up the cut lemon "Start rubbing." She said tossing the pieces to Sokka.

"Rubbing?" he asked slightly afraid, "Over Toph?"

"No I want you to rub Zuko," she turned to Sokka, "Of course Toph. Zuko have you poured that glass of milk yet?"

He nodded, "Here." He gave the glass to Toph, who drank the cow's juice greedily before wiping her white moustache on the back of her hand.

"Stop moving," Sokka whined, trying to rub lemon on Toph's back, "This is awkward enough as is."

"Just put the lemon on Sokka." She grumbled, hunching her back so Sokka could get more on.

"C'mon Zuko, I'm not sure if Aang has any money." Katara followed Zuko down the stairs. On the last one she tripped and arms in front of her braced for the fall someone caught her. Zuko stared at her, and she looked at him before getting onto her own two feet quickly, "Thank you." She mumbled adjusting her shirt.

"No problem." He said, giving her a small smile before walking towards the pharmacy.

"Do you think he likes her?" Sokka asked Toph, now working on her arms with the lemon.

"I'm not sure," Toph answered truthfully, letting her hands clasp to keep them from scratching, "I'm really not sure."

"Here we go," Katara, Aang and Zuko came back Katara holding a small bowl of a cream, "Relief from all form of rashes, itching, bug bites and poison plants." She popped open the lid and offered it to Sokka.

"How does it feel Toph?" he asked after applying a liberal amount of cream to her skin.

She moaned contently and stood up gingerly, making sure to not sear any of the cream onto the couch or chairs, "Pass me my shirt."

Sokka grabbed the shirt but took a moment to look at the slogan before bursting into laughter, "'When God gives you lemons you find a new god'." He read aloud before starting to laugh again.

Toph snatched the shirt from him, pulling it over her arms carefully, "Yeah, you know, Power Thirst?"

"With new flavors like," Sokka started, putting on his manly voice, "Manana, Rawberry and Gun!"

Zuko quickly interrupted, "It looks like there's some storm coming up you guys." Zuko pointed at the grey cloud splattering rain onto the earth.

"Hey," Aang was pointing out a small green car sitting on the side of the road farther ahead, "Someone is signalling us."

Someone, standing under an umbrella, was holding out their thumb obviously hoping to catch a ride out of the brewing storm. Judging from the skirt it was a girl.

"Zuko, pull over, maybe we can help her." Katara said, standing between the two front seats.

"Yeah, but what happens if she's some kind of mass murderer on the run?" Sokka fretted, taking a glance at the girl.

"We'll chance it." Zuko said and using the turn signal pulled to the side of the road, watching other cars whiz by their windshield whisper sweeping the rain away.

"Hope aboard!" Katara called after opening the door.

* * *

A/N

Ne, ne I know it took a long time but here it is!

TrueThinker, you're up! Good luck!

Oh and bonus points if anybody knows what Power Thirst is, major points XD


	7. Girl in the Rain

TrueThinker

**No Worries**

**Chapter 7**

**Girl in the Rain **

Thunder clapped outside with vengeful ferocity as the girl rushed into the RV, while mumbling vaguely "Thank you, thank you, thank you so much . . . "

"No problem." Zuko said happily, ignoring the honks he was getting for blocking his side of the road.

The stranger moved her light brown out of her face with shaking hands, as if she had a permanent chill. She put her pale fingers under her layers of pink skirts, and looked up at the people in the RV. She analyzed them, as if deciding right then and there if they were good people or not. They looked kind, but what if they were just cruel people in disguise, like her boyfriend had been? She sighed, her round face contorting into a frown.

Zuko swiftly closed the door to the RV began the driving again, much to the relief of everyone else on the road.

Katara looked at the pretty girl with concern. She was dripping wet, her clothes soaked and sticking to her body. Her hair hung limply around her shoulders, cold water drops falling onto her shirt and drenching her further.

"Oh, you poor thing . . . " Katara said, furrowing her brow, "I'll get you a towel."

Katara started looking through one of the cabinets, her shining blue eyes darting from side to side. She closed that one, and looked into the next plastic cupboard. She eventually found a crimson towel, which she handed to the girl with worry.

"Thank you." The girl mumbled, draping the towel around her shoulders and under her hair, so the moisture no longer soaked through her white tank top.

"So . . . what's your name?" Sokka asked awkwardly.

"My name is Song." She answered simply, wiping her face, which was stained with ruined makeup.

"Oh! So are you, like, musically talented?" Aang said, making a very lame joke.

"Not especially." Song answered flatly. Aang looked at his feet shyly in embarrassment.

"Please excuse Aang. He's kind of clueless" Toph remarked.

Song looked at the short girl whose black Tshirt read 'Jesus loves you

–Too bad everyone else hates your guts.' Song snickered lightly, the first even remotely humorous thing she'd seen all day.

"That's fine. I've gotten that before." Song immediately thought of her (now ex) boyfriend.

"What were you doing on the side of the road, anyway?" Zuko asked from the front seat, taking his eyes off the cars in front of him for only a second.

Song shrugged.

"You're not a mass murderer on the run, are you?" Aang asked almost seriously.

"Just shut up, Aang." Toph said angrily.

"Sorry."

"So, what exactly were you up to?" Sokka repeated for Zuko.

Song looked away from Sokka's face.

"She doesn't have to tell us if she doesn't want to." Katara said firmly.

Song turned back to the group. "No, it's okay. I guess if you picked me up, you have a right to know why you had to."

The group listened intently. Zuko, still focused on the road, even perked an ear so he could hear the strange girl's story. All was silent, except for the sound of the rain hitting the RV and of the cars driving by. Occasionally, you could hear a car run into a puddle and splatter the puddle's contents onto the side of the RV. Otherwise, though, it was a quiet scene. Song was not sure she liked all the eyes on her or of the stillness in the room.

"Well," Song began, "I had this boyfriend. He seemed like a dream at first, be he eventually turned into a nightmare. It was little things at first; sometimes he ignored me when I talked to him. Maybe he found the TV more important than me. Maybe he didn't clean up when he made a mess. But I was pretty content anyway. Until I found the number."

Katara raised an eyebrow.

"So I found this phone number, " Song continued, "In his jacket pocket while I was washing clothes. At first I figured it was a business number. I'm not sure what I did with it, but I think I left it on the counter so he could make his phone call later or something. But I did notice he stayed out later now, and never explained why. This made me think about the number again. So one day, I called it."

Zuko frowned. This would definitely turn into a sad story.

"Some girl answered. I asked her who she was and what business she had with my boyfriend, but she hung up on me. I asked my boyfriend about it, but he just said one of his business partners must have written down the wrong number when they gave him theirs. I didn't really believe him, but pretended I did.

"Earlier today, my boyfriend took me on a drive to talk to me. He told me he had found someone else, and that he was sorry for lying to me so long. Who knows how long he means?" Song shook her head, "Anyway, so I got really angry. More pissed than I had ever been. I tried to grab the wheel from him, I'm not sure why. Just blinded by fury, I guess. He started yelling at me to stop it. I ignored him and tried to drive, not sure where I was planning on going. He just started to push me away, to which I only became even more enraged. So I drove off the rode, end of story."

"What happened to your boyfriend?" Sokka asked nervously.

Song looked at her feet. "He wasn't injured, the land was only a little rounded. But the car had a flat tire. So he flipped up his pretty black phone and called someone. Probably his other girlfriend, and they left together. Leaving me to die, for all he knew."

Song felt a single tear roll down her cheek, like a liquid diamond. All was quiet.

Toph broke the awkward silence. "He sounds like a bastard."

Song nodded sadly. "Thank you so much for this. I thought no one would ever pick me up."

Katara couldn't resist. She rushed over and hugged the girl. "I'm so sorry. I'm so, so sorry that happened to you."

"Where to?" Zuko asked Song cautiously.

"Anywhere but here."

* * *

TrueThinker's AN:

No worries, eh? For me, it always comes back to being a tragedy writer. Old habits die hard. Anyway, hope you enjoyed my chapter . . . Kind of short, sort of lame, but satisfactory for my own standards.


	8. Something About Ringtones and Halo

SuperBleh11

**No Worries**

**Chapter 8**

**Something About Ringtones and Halo**

-

He braced himself, taking a deep breath before he rounded the corner. The steel of his rifle shown grimly in his hand as he brought it up to bear, scanning the landscape through the electronic sights of his firearm.

..._Nothing!_

Somehow, the canny punk had slipped away from him yet again. He was good. Too good.

With a long, drawn out sigh, he prized another magazine from the back of his pack and fitted it to the weapon; his expert hands prying back the chamber and sliding it in with a barely audible metallic click from the springs. The faceplate felt oddly confining against the low humming of his shield generator, glittering in a blue incandescent sheen of light on his HUD. A metallic coffin, claustrophobic and desensitizing.

His feet calmly paced along the solid concrete of the compound, sending echoing blasts of noise throughout. He knew he was showing up on radar, and he knew that the noise of his boots was likely giving away his position, but all the soldier could do was scan the landscape for good hiding positions and pray he didn't get caught on the raw end of a shotgun.

_'I've got to get out of here,_' he thought, _'His shotgun works great in these close quarters, but if I can get to the open field, I can kill him._'

The strategy was sound, but there was an entire complex to work his way out of in order to get to the open ground. The slim distance, working through hallways and corridors seemed to be miles, and he was out of grenades. All that was left was the rifle and the sidearm, tucked underneath his armor as a last resort. The enemy could play the waiting game and not show up on radar, coaxing the hapless soldier out with clever use of grenades and finishing him with a well-timed blast of buckshot.

The soldier was pounding the ground at full pace, clattering noisily without regard to the ease with which his enemy was spotting him. One confrontation. That's what he would have to live through. He flew threw another hallway, bracing himself for the imminent explosion, but found himself alive and fine.

Then, it happened.

The man in black flew through the open doorway, letting fly with a small submachine gun, painting the wall with the pattering of shells. Pure reflex got the soldier out of the way with minor bullet wounds, carrying him out past the range with three quarters of his shield left as he returned with two short bursts from his rifle. He continued past, racing as hard as he could, but he knew the layout of the building, he knew that the enemy was going to try and head him off at the next corridor, and he knew that it would be a grenade or a shotgun blast that met him there.

Sure enough, before he could even push by the palm tree sitting idly amidst the killzone, he saw the glowing blue orb fly through and stick against the wall. With a cry he threw himself back, pushing himself around the corridor just as the explosion rocked the building. Blue light blinded him, glaring against his faceplate as he moved to counterattack, firing series of bursts into the clearing smoke, knowing that the black-armored villain would emerge with a blast from his shotgun.

He heard the pained grunt and took his chance, flying forward with the butt of his rifle. The smoke suddenly encapsulated his vision as the flash of light drifted away, blowing acrid greyness through his field of vision and jerking away his enemy from sight. He managed a glancing blow against what seemed like a shoulder, and was out the door before the opponent could recover.

_'Take it easy, you're not out of the woods yet,_' he thought, as he sprinted backwards, peering through the scope for signs of a silhouette exiting the doorway. When there were none, he allowed himself to turn, looking desperately around for the weapon he was seeking.

And there it was, lying serenely against the grass, the black metal painting an eerie scene amidst the life of the nature surrounding it. He tossed his sidearm away, scooping the weapon up in his hands and readying it. The .50 Caliber, four shot, long-range rifle with an immensely powerful scope and an immensely accurate spread was leveled out against his arm as he crouched and waited for his opponent to appear. He pulled the scope to a minimal setting, allowing him to pan back and forth across the landscape to see where the enemy would emerge, carefully eyeing areas for movement.

_'C'mon, just show your pretty little head so I can blast it off,'_ he thought, tentatively moving back and forth and eyeing the compound off in the distance. He knew he was a crack-shot with this weapon. He had the utmost confidence in his ability to finish off the man in black with it.

And then, the beast emerged. The looped, impossible purple structure screamed horrendously as it shot up through the air, arcing elegantly as it lined itself up. His gasp of surprise mingled with the loud cracks of the .50 Cal sniper as he fired round after round into the monstrous Banshee, praying for a direct hit, but it was not to be. The alien vessel, screaming towards him like an angel from Hell, began pouring blue fire down onto his unprotected head. All he could do was scream...

"Game Over."

"Damn it, Aang, how much time do you spend playing this stupid game?" Sokka asked angrily, casting his controller against the ground in his immense frustration, "That's the eighth time you've beaten me today! Get out of the house every once in a while!"

Aang smiled sheepishly, scratching the back of his head as he tried to passively dismiss Sokka's futile rage. "C'mon, Sokka, it's only a game, it's not a big deal," he said helpfully, but this only served to fuel Sokka's fury further.

"Snoozles, lighten up, it's a dumb videogame," Toph snapped. Out of nowhere, her hand whirred through the air to smack against the back of Sokka's head, sending a vibrant clap of flesh on flesh through the cabin, resonating in the ears of the passengers.

"Guys, is everything ok?" Song asked sweetly, poking her head out from behind the bedroom door. Katara's clothing fit oddly upon her slim shoulders, draping around her stomach and creating the odd impression of a overlong nightshirt. For whatever reason she had kept her jean skirt, clinging coyly to the golden tan of her legs with the help of the torrential rain still spattered against it, flowing neatly with the darkened dampness of her hair.

Zuko managed a quick look from his driver's chair; he could not resist the impulse to take another brief but evident glance at the curvature of her shapely thighs, covered so expertly by the denim, or the subtle nape of her neck that swooned down from the slightly big high school shirt that was draped over her. A quick, sordid blush appeared on his features as he wheeled back around, locking his eyes firmly upon the whirring blur of the seemingly infinite dotted yellow line that ran against the road ahead.

Morning had come like a migraine, slowly, painfully that day. The sun had seemed overly bright against the overcast, slate grey sky as it had reared its ugly head over the horizon. At Toph's seemingly random insistence, the crew had performed an all-nighter to cover more distance; it had been sheer luck that they had stumbled upon the migrating figure of young Song as she hitchhiked mournfully on the side of the road. Zuko couldn't help but ponder at the incredible luck of the instance. If the group had decided to take the night off in some parking lot or RV camp, Song would have been stranded all night amidst the pouring rain.

"Screw this game, I've got to go take a leak," Sokka muttered angrily, pulling Zuko out of his quiet introspection. He heard the audible clatter of the controller being cast angrily aside amidst the familiar rustling of clothing as Sokka awkwardly clambered to his feet.

"Oh, that's pleasant!" Katara snapped at him, shooting him a glare that looked strangely ferocious. Sokka sneered coolly in reply, brushing past her and grabbing the door handle. It squeaked rustily as it shut behind him, nearly slamming with the force of the springs as he locked it.

"He's usually not that difficult. Really," Katara pleaded, touching Song on the shoulder, "He's just very competitive, and he hates losing."

Song responded with a kind smile that was quickly cut off by Toph, "Ha! You'd think he'd get used to it!" The little blind girl yowled in a very catlike manner as she shot to her feet and stretched, bringing her arms behind her back and locking them. Katara couldn't help but notice the caption on her shirt as she jutted her chest out, "My Fist, Your Face, OTP", boldly scrawled across the deep forest green of the shirt in obnoxiously sunny yellow. She opened her mouth to mention it, but was quickly cut off.

The shrill bleating of a cell phone's artificial tones shrieked out the tune to "Flagpole Sitta", sending the vibrant digital notes throughout the cabin. Every resident instinctively grabbed at their pockets, seeking to pry their own cell phone out, but Song ended the confusion.

"Oh, it's mine, guys," she said sheepishly, disappearing back into the bedroom, "I'll be back in a second." The door closed unobtrusively behind her, lurching shut with only the dull click of the lock making any noise.

"Guess it's the parents," Toph remarked, plopping down unceremoniously in the nearest chair.

"Good," Katara replied with a smile, "They're probably worried sick about her."

Her blue jeans slid noisily against the leather of the couch as she sat, brushing a looping tendril of hair out of her eyes. The sun had begun to dissipate the clouds looming overhead, allowing splotches of blue to reveal themselves to the world below. For some reason, this period was one she loved the most about rainstorms, when the aftermath began to blow away.

"Hey, who has the Harvey Danger ringtone?" Sokka asked, as he paced out of the bathroom, running a hand through his hair.

"Song does," Aang answered from the copilot seat, peering his head around it.

Sokka took a moment, before glowering angrily at him. An eyebrow cocked upwards into his forehead as he laughed sarcastically. "Ha-ha. Seriously, who has the Flagpole Sitta ringtone? I love that song!"

"Song does," Katara repeated, nonplused, "What's your deal? She got a call and went into the bedroom."

A short, grunting laugh came from his throat as a confused grin spread across his face. He looked around the cabin, eyeing the residents for any sign of treachery before replying, "Well that doesn't make any sense, does it? If she had a cell phone, why was she hitchhiking? Why didn't she call anybody to pick her up? I know she wanted to get away, but it was pouring outside."

"I guess there wasn't any service," Katara replied, shrugging. Sokka snorted again.

"That still doesn't make any sense. Why wouldn't she call anybody while we were driving? Apparently she's getting service now. Are you guys serious? It doesn't seem to..."

But before he could continue, he was cut off by the bedroom door reopening. Song came out with a smile, sweetly directed towards the passengers that were staring at her. Sokka opened up his mouth to say something, but before the first syllable could leave his mouth, a digitized version of the Darth Vader theme fired loudly across the cabin.

Sokka looked over at his best friend, sitting blanched against the window. Her pale skin seemed to turn even paler as she pulled the phone out of her pocket and said, "Uh oh... That's my mom's ringtone."


	9. Betrayal

Shadowstarr

**No Worries**

**Chapter 9**

**Betrayal**

The six teenagers stared, wide eyed, at the phone in Toph's hand, frozen in their seats as if Darth Vader really had just walked into the room.

This phone call meant bad news, considering how thin the ice that Toph and her family skated on was. At home, Toph even being in the same room as her parents meant that anyone in the vicinity was in terrible danger of being hit by one of the passing chairs or other objects that the Beifong family took pleasure in throwing towards each other.

This phone call meant that the wall that Toph had tried to build between her parents and herself when she ran away from them was about to be broken down.

This phone call also meant, of course, that Toph was busted.

"Wh-What's wrong?" Song asked uneasily, oblivious to the problem, but sensing the tension in the room anyway.

The others managed to ignore her completely, continuing to watch the ringing phone with dread. "Umm, ok…." Song said, obviously puzzled. She looked over at Toph, her confusion clearly etched in her face.

"Hey, aren't you gonna pick that up?"

Finally, Toph looked up at her, and, in a blank tone that clearly implied: "I'm pissed, so don't continue to talk to me if you don't want to die", replied: "No."

"But…" Song pressed, not catching the "pissed" part. "That's your mom on the phone, right? You must have been in this RV for, like, weeks without talking to her! Don't you-" she hesitated, seeing the bitterness in Toph's eyes.

The others waited, knowing that this wasn't something that Toph was likely to take lightly.

"What?" Toph spat out angrily. "Don't I what?"

"Don't- " Song recoiled at Toph's glare, but continued on, trying to get Toph to understand. "Don't you… miss her?" she finished in a small voice.

The room held its breath, knowing that the odds of Song not making it through the conversation alive were very high.

Toph glared at Song, clenching her fists and breathing deeply.

Aware of what dangerous territory Song was on the verge of entering, Sokka finally broke the tense silence. " Hey, Toph, why don't you-"

"I'm going to take a shower," Toph interrupted him in a deliberately slow, calm voice. Her friends watched quietly as Toph walked across the room, past Song, (who, in her defense, only flinched a little), and into the bathroom.

As the door slammed shut behind her, the obnoxious ringing was finally silenced by the voicemail, leaving a bewildered Song to stand, staring at the closed door, in silence.

"Listen, Song," Katara was saying a few minutes later. "I really hope you aren't too upset with Toph." Katara's inner peacemaker was desperate to apologize for her friend's actions. She really didn't mean anything, and-"

"Really Katara, don't worry about it! I know she didn't mean anything! She was just upset!" Song stopped for a second, looking down. "I just really wish I could understand her relationship with her parents. I mean, I'm so close with my mom, and Toph is so…"

Song trailed off, not wishing to offend anyone further. "I just wish I could understand, so I won't upset her anymore."

Katara looked at her, apparently contemplating something. "Song…" she finally said, looking at the closed bathroom door to make sure that Toph was still in there. "Do you really want to know what happened to make Toph so angry?"

Song nodded fervently. "I mean, I really want to help her…and, maybe, if I knew the problem, there would be something I could do!"

"Okay." Katara looked doubtful, but she began anyway. "Well," she said.

Song leaned in, in order to hear the other girl's words more clearly.

"Toph…wasn't born blind."

Song tilted her head. "What does this have to do with her parents?"

"Well," Katara said again, making sure, once again, that the bathroom door remained closed.

"When Toph was a baby, there was this…incident…and her parents-"

"Hiya, Sugarqueen," a loud voice interrupted. "How's it going?"

The two girls spun around, jumping out of their conspiratorial huddle to find Toph standing in front of them, her hair dripping water onto a shirt sporting the words: "My anger management class angers me!"

"H-hey Toph!" Song said, trying and failing to put on an innocent face. "We were just-" She was saved the trouble of coming up with an excuse by the Harvey Danger ringtone that came suddenly blaring from the phone in her pocket. Song looked down gratefully.

"I-I gotta take this!" She squeaked, and ran out of the room, pulling her phone out as she went along.

"So," Toph turned to Katara, folding her arms across her chest. "What was that all about?"

Katara looked guiltily back at her, trying to find a way to explain why she was suddenly blabbing Toph's life story to random hitchhikers.

Before Katara had the chance to respond, Song's sugary voice came calling from the other room. "Hey, Toph!" Song called, apparently done with her phone call. "Could you come here for a sec?"

Toph looked towards the sound of Song's voice, rolling her eyes and giving Katara one last death glare before going to see what Song wanted.

"What?" Toph asked harshly, aware that she and Song were still on very shaky ground.

"Well, Toph, I'm really sorry about what I said before, and I wanted to apologize properly."

"Properly?" Toph asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, yeah." Song said. "I mean I wanted to be able to really talk to you, like, in private, 'cause I feel really bad." She continued.

"So I convinced Zuko here to pull over here for a few minutes so we could walk outside and talk!"

Toph looked towards Zuko, grimacing. Of course he wouldn't say no to his precious Song.

Dang hormones.

Toph looked at Song, who was smiling at her. _Well, thanks a bunch, Zuko! Toph _thought. _Thanks to you, I'm off to have a delightful talk with Little Miss Happy over here!_

Toph sighed. "Fine," she said. "Let's get this over with."

Two minutes later, Toph was walking alongside of Song, trying to pretend that she was actually listening to what the other girl was saying.

"So, you know, I really wanted to say sorry for what I did. It was so mean of me! I'm not usually that rude to people, you know? My parent's always say-" Song stopped, mid-blabber, not sure if it was safe to mention parents in front of Toph. Toph kept walking, totally ignoring the awkward silence that had just fallen between them. "I- I'm sorry, Toph." Song began again, this time speaking with a softer tone. I really do want to apologize…" She stopped suddenly, staring confusedly ahead into the clearing that was lying in their path.

"What's wrong?" Toph asked, wondering why Song had stopped so abruptly.

"N-Nothing, Toph." Song replied, her eyebrows knitting together. "Let's just…let's just go straight ahead into that clearing, okay? Keep walking."

Toph's confusion was enhanced further when Song suddenly broke out into a run and disappeared into the shadows ahead.

_Wow Zuko,_ Toph though sarcastically as she walked ahead, trying to find Song. _You sure know how to pick 'em!_

* * *

Harvey Danger blasted through the parked RV, filling the vehicle with noise.

"Hey," Aang said, looking towards the phone. "Song left her phone here."

Ignoring the obviousness of his comment, Katara walked over to the phone, picking it up and flipping it open in order to silence it.

"Well that's really not good, what if she-" She paused mid-sentence, staring at the name that flashed up on the "missed calls" list with wide eyes.

"This is…" She said, keeping her eyes glued to the screen.

Life was about to get a whole lot harder.

* * *

Toph walked into the middle of the clearing, wondering where Song had run off to.

"Where the heck did she go?" she thought, turning her head around to try and hear Song.

The heavy footfalls that reached her ears were definitely not Song. Not only were they not the usual graceful skip she usually associated with the happy girl, but there were two pairs of footsteps instead of one.

Toph knew what would happen a second before it did.

She began to run forward, but it was too late. A strong hand reached out to cover her mouth, and another pair of arms grabbed her from behind. Toph just stood there helplessly, unable to move.

* * *

Back in the RV, the four friends stared at the phone in confusion, wondering why Lao BeiFong would be calling Song.

* * *

"Hey Toph," Song's sickly sweet voice reached Toph's ears before the girl even stepped out of the shadows.

"I'd like you to meet my friends." Song pointed to the two men who were currently holding Toph still.

"Xin Fu and Yu."

* * *

A/N: Well, that was satisfying. It's really not that great, but I'm glad that I finally wrote it!


	10. Go Fish

Twilight Rose2

**No Worries**

**Chapter 10**

**Go Fish**

"Do you have a three?"

"Go fish."

"Um…do you have a queen?" Zuko glares and hands the card over to Katara. She grins and places all four of the monarchs down on the table. "I win. Again."

"Dammit. How are you so good at this game?"

Katara winked. "Skills."

"Right." Zuko rolls his eyes and looks at his watch. "Song and Toph have been gone for half-an-hour now…should we go looking for them?"

Aang, who was playing on the PS3, swung around in the chair. "Nah, Toph can handle herself."

"I don't know…Zuko's got a point, I don't have a good feeling about this." Katara says, hugging herself. "It's getting dark."

Sokka finally enters the conversation. "Oh c'mon, Toph's blind! It doesn't matter what time it is! But my little sis' has a point. I propose a search party! Aang, you stay here in case they come back. Zuko and Katara you go together, and I guess I'll go alone. If we don't find her in an hour we all meet back here. Any questions?"

"When did you become a leader?" Katara asked, almost impressed.

He shrugged. As he did this the RV door opened. Song came climbing though looking frantic. "You guys!"

"What?"

"Toph! She's hurt! Quick! We have to drive there!"

"Toph's hurt!?" Sokka jumped out of seat and started for the driver's chair. Zuko threw out an arm, stopping him.

"Should we really all go?"

Song pushed out her bottom lip and took Zuko's hand in hers. "Please for me Zuko." Katara pretended to vomit while Sokka stared in horror.

And so they were off. Song directing them along the dirt path, Katara and Sokka were standing by the RV door, ready to jump out once they arrived at the destination.

They drove into a small clearing. Sokka, Katara, Aang and Zuko all jumped out, looking for Toph.

"Toph?"

"Toph!"

"Toph?!"

"Topppppph!?"

"I can't find her!" Sokka said frantically, looking at his friends.

Katara nodded before looking around. "Hey Song's…" before she could finish her sentence the RV gunned into life and drove off.

"She just stole The Dreaded Ultra Super Awesome Delta Foxy Force Five Limited RV." Aang yelled.

So they stood there. Unable to find Toph and without the slightest clue to where they were. The woods closed in around them and they heard footsteps approaching followed by voices. "It's almost too easy. Picking them off will be a piece of cake."

Two tall men emerged from the tress. Immediately Aang and Zuko stood in front of the siblings. "Katara. Sokka. Go find Toph. We'll deal with these guys."

"Are you sure?" Katara asked. A hand reached out to stop both boys but Sokka stopped it.

"C'mon." he said and lead her away through the trees, weaving in and out, looking for his best friend.

"Being brave are you?" Yu asked, stroking his long beard.

"Who are you and what have you done with our friend?"

"We are Private Eyes, hired by the Beifongs to find their daughter. Song is our head detective. Toph Beifong is fine and will be returned to the Beifong Estate. I'm sure that is fine with you?"

"No that's not fine! What about us!? How are WE gonna get back!?" Aang yelled at them. "Now. Let us by."

The two burly men laughed. "And you're going to make us?"

"Zuko is third degree blackbelt in Northern Shaolin. I practice daily in Ba Gua Zhang. Bring it on."

* * *

"There's a car!"

"And there's Toph inside!"

They ran over the convertible. Toph was laying in the backseat, unconscious. Sokka jumped into the car, and shook Toph whispering in her ear, "Toph…Toph, wake up."

Toph moaned but remained out of it. Katara looked at Sokka and motioned for him to shut-up. They hid in the car and just let their eyes show, waiting to see who or what was coming out of the forest.

"Katara, Sokka? It's us, you can stop hiding." Zuko came out of the dark, Aang following. Katara jumped out of the sleek, black car and glomped the closest person, who happened to be Zuko.

"Um. We have the car keys." Aang said, jingling a set of shiny keys.

Katara let go of Zuko, swiped the keys from Aang and jumped into the driver's seat, jamming the keys into the ignition the car purred into life.

"SHOTGUN!" Zuko yelled. Everyone stared at him. "What? I like shotgun."

So they drove off. Zuko and Katara in the front while Aang, Toph and Sokka shared the back. Toph was still dozing on Sokka's lap until they hit the highway. Katara was a madman at the wheel. Driving over the speed limit and overtaking everything in her path. Aang and Zuko were looking terrified while Sokka wrapped an arm around Toph.

"THERE IT IS!" Toph sat bolt upright, and in the process hit Sokka head causing him a wicked whiplash. Meanwhile Katara, following Zuko's pointing finger, took a turnoff to a Denny's where sitting in the parking lot was their RV.

"Dammit. We don't have the keys."

"Song's probably inside. I'm going to get that little bitch back."

"Toph are you sure that's a good idea?" She was still leaning on Sokka, recovering from the drug induced sleep. At his words she stood upright, her knees barely shaking.

"Just tell me what booth she's in."

Sokka led her inside and positioned her near the booth. "Third on the right. She's sitting on the side farthest and on the other side is...a boy? I guess her real boyfriend. Zuko's not going to happy about that."

Toph flashed him a smile. "That's what Katara's for. Distracting him."

"What!? Toph!" But she was already walking. When she reached the third booth she slammed her hands on the table. Sokka could see a heated argument building. Song's mouth was moving frantically, her eyes wide with terror. She went to her purse, pulling out the RV keys. Toph took them and, smiling politely, took Song's drink and poured it all down her front. Song just let out a shriek while Toph and Sokka ran from the restaurant, snorting loudly.

"Here you go Princey." She tossed him the keys. Aang, Katara and Zuko all entered the RV. Sokka was about to get in until he heard Toph let out a small gasp.

He turned around to find her clutching her ankle. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I think I hurt my ankle fighting off those two thugs." She tried to take another step but wobbled on her foot. "I guess I was so angry I didn't notice."

Sokka walked over to her and gently lifted her into his arms. She blushed. "Is this better?" he asked. She nodded and he walked inside and put her on the bed. "You should really get some sleep."

"Um. Yeah, thanks Sokka."

"No problem Toph."

* * *

A/N

lol that was a long arc! Solembum13 you're up next! And all the chapters now have each author's name at the top, so you can know who did your favourite chapters :D


	11. Sideburns 5O

Twilight Rose2's A/N: There is cussing within this chapter, so be careful.

* * *

Solembum13

**No Worries**

**Chapter 11**

**Sideburns 5-O**

"Alright! We showed them!" Aang said excitedly as they closed the RV's doors, laughing joyfully; Katara and Zuko grinned while they watched Aang celebrate. Meanwhile Sokka was propping up Toph's leg with an extra pillow while she began to listen to her IPod; Sokka noticed Toph wince when he set her leg down to rest.

"Sorry," he said apologetically. She raised an eyebrow.

"For what?"

"Well, you're in pain...I thought I hurt you."

"Well, you didn't...I'm fine, it's not that bad," Toph said in defence. Sokka ignored her denial and glanced down at her ankle, and frowned; Katara stopped grinning when she looked at her concerned brother.

"Sokka, what is it?" he turned to Katara.

"Toph's ankle...I think it's sprained." Sokka said, watching the spot start turning a dull, throbbing, red.

Aang stopped laughing and walked over to check it out himself, then gasped, "Not good!"

"How badly?" Katara asked hesitantly.

"It's not that bad..." Toph stated.

"Oh yes it is!" Sokka remarked and turned to his sister, "Katara, it's swollen beyond belief. We're gonna have to go to a hospital." Katara flinched and sighed.

"Crap. Fine...Toph will you be okay for now?" They all looked at Toph who wore a very annoyed look on her face.

"Yeah, I guess, whatever...nothing much I can do about it," She replied grumpily.

"Just get some sleep," Sokka said. She huffed and turned up her music, closed her eyes, and started to doze off.

"Well that was surprisingly easy," Zuko said and turned his head back to the wheel, "Well, we should head ou-" Zuko stopped in mid-sentence when his eyes caught the mirrors reflection. "Oh no."

"What?" Katara and Sokka both asked in unison. Aang stared at Zuko, turned to see what he was looking at, also surprised when he realized the problem. Zuko started the Dreaded Ultra Super Awesome Delta Foxy Force Five Limited RV's engine.

Katara and Sokka finally caught on when they saw Song and the mystery man pacing out of the Denny's towards the RV. Katara gasped and Sokka shrieked.

"Better step on it Zuko!" Aang said impatiently.

"Wait, what's on her shirt? What did you two do to her?" Katara said, glaring at Sokka.

"Who cares? Just drive Zuko!" Sokka said ignoring his sister.

He didn't need to be told twice; Zuko was already pulling out of Denny's and quickly going into the highway. Sokka saw Song through the window following the guy, getting into (what was most likely) the guy's car and started pulling out of the parking lot.

"Don't stop driving Zuko they're following!" Zuko sped up while Sokka and Aang watched behind them glued to the concept of being chased. Katara, sitting shotgun, assisted Zuko also by watching through the rear view mirrors and what was in front of them.

"Zuko turn left!" She shouted. Zuko took a violent turn and jerked down the exit.

"Where's Song?" he asked, while manoeuvring around a car.

"No good, she sees us!" Aang said clutching onto his seat.

"Damn, she's turning!" Katara added.

"Shit." Zuko cut off another car, resulting to the driver honking.

"Oh shut up," Katara hissed back, "Zuko that way!"

He shifted more left going down to another lane, cutting more people off, "No good," He said, noticing Song through his mirror still tailing them. Zuko sped up and took another turn without any warning down to another highway. The RV took a dangerous tilt; everyone gasped and held on as Zuko did the cliché "bad action movie car chase" move and turned the wheel preventing the tip and continued to drive. Toph's body jerked and she yelped. Her eyes shot open surprised and she blinked, raising her head, taking out an earphone.

"What's going on?!" She yelled, suddenly aware with how fast they were driving.

"Song's chasing us!" Sokka replied, and before Toph could ask any more questions Zuko took another violent turn and everyone shifted to the right, causing Toph to nearly roll off the bed; but Sokka caught her in time, then propped her up into a sitting position and took a seat next to her on the bed as they both held on for dear life.

"God, Zuko, your driving is worse than Katara's! Err, no offence" Aang shouted also holding on for his life then blushed and smiled apologetically when Katara shot him a look.

"Well, get used to it! She also wasn't driving a big RV; I'm turning again," Zuko replied and sped up once again manoeuvring badly around more cars to reach the next exit.

"She's still behind us!" Katara cried, "DAMN! How the hell are we gonna lose her?!"

"I got it!" Sokka shouted looking ahead, "Zuko, don't freak out but…see that yellow light up there?"

"Yeah?"

"It's gonna turn red any second now; you need to run it."

"WHAT?" Aang yelled, "Are you insane!?"

"It's the only way! Do it Zuko!" Zuko nodded and floored it. The RV was cutting off more cars to reach the light. Everyone's hearts raced, as they were getting closer to the yellow light.

"Pray we live," Zuko stated and sped through the intersection; it turned red right in the middle of their crossing and many people cussed at their "road rage"...but they made it safely. The group looked behind them and saw the traffic delaying Song, who was furiously waiting at the stoplight.

"She stopped!" Katara said excitedly they all turned to Zuko who to be safe, took another exit leading out of the town and onto a scenic road.

"YES! We lost her!" Aang announced.

"Lost her for now," Sokka said staring at the vanishing town while he still held Toph, "We're gonna see her again, I just know it." Toph nodded.

"Yeah; seeing as my parents hired her, I wouldn't be surprised…they have serious trust issues."

"Well, you left without telling them, I'm not sure that's helping your case," Katara remarked. Toph glared in her direction.

"That's beside the point, Sweetness," Toph said. Zuko drove over a bump in the road and she grabbed her ankle in pain; Sokka laid her down once again and repeated the routine of propping her leg up.

"We really need to find a hospital, guys, before we have anymore interruptions."

"Well, another town is bound to come up soon," Zuko replied, "The map should be in the glove compartment, Katara." Katara nodded and opened up the compartment, but the only thing that came from her was a gasp followed by an "uh-oh". Aang groaned.

"What now?" he asked.

"The map; it's missing. I bet that bitch took it," Katara stated and slammed the compartment shut.

"Shit," Zuko responded.

"We can always get another one," Aang said optimistically.

"No shit, I wasn't talking about that," Zuko retorted, "Don't you hear that?"

"I do, way to go Zuko," Toph said. Before the other three could ask, Zuko slowed down the driving as the siren grew louder as it came closer and finally Zuko pulled over. The cop car came to an end behind the RV.

"Fuck," Zuko grumbled, "no one talks," he ordered and rolled down the window in dismay as the Cop came closer to the vehicle. The cop wore the standard navy and black uniform and a poker face that said it all. Aang winced in sight of the angry Cop, Sokka rubbed his temples with his free hand and Katara simply looked petrified in the front seat. Zuko maintained a calm, aloof attitude and slowly turned his head left to face the man by his window. The Cop continued to frown as he stared at Zuko behind his massive glasses, sighed after analyzing him, and leaned forward.

"Do you realize how fast you were driving just now?" he asked calmly and kept staring. Zuko continued to face the cop, but looked up towards his black hat and bit the side of his lip in thought; looked down at the floor and finally stared back at the cop with an answer.

"No, not entirely." Katara stared at Zuko dumbfounded with his pathetic smart-ass answer while the three grouped in the back smacked their heads. The cop raised his eyebrows.

"No idea? None at all?"

"No, Sorry," Zuko responded a little quieter. Unsatisfied; the cop gritted his teeth and leaned in a little closer to the window.

"Well, punk, you were going five over the speed limit; did you think that would slide on this road?"

"Five?' Zuko asked puzzled. Aang and Sokka looked at each other, thinking the same thing.

"He must not have seen the chase, hopefully we're clear" Sokka mouthed to Aang and he nodded.

"Yes, five, did I stutter?

"No, sir, sorry…I…"

"License and identification," The cop interrupted and held out his hand. Zuko huffed and fumbled around his pockets for his wallet; Katara, Sokka and Aang watched nervously, glancing back to the cop who was growing more impatient each second.

"A-hah", Zuko muttered finally finding his wallet and took out his license and ID; the cop snatched it from his hand and started to compare Zuko and his photo. He scratched one of his massive side burns when he did this, only stressing the moment for the five in the car.

"So, you're seventeen-years-old travelling halfway across the country with a bunch of other punks and no parents; care to explain?"

"Actually, I'm eighteen, and"

"Don't correct me punk,"

"But I'm eighteen!" Zuko stated in defence; the cop frowned and looked back at the ID again.

"Fine, eighteen, so you're driving with a bunch of minors from the looks of it, right?"

"Well…"

"Do they have parental consent?"

"Yeah, of course," Zuko replied anxiously.

"It's true sir," Katara added, the cop turned to face her resulting to a sheepish "sorry" and turning away.

"I can also see that none of you seem to be wearing seatbelts; do you know what that means?"

"A big ticket?' Zuko asked stupidly. The cop looked at him with disgust and leaned in closer face-to-face with Zuko, breathing heavily as if he was holding back his anger, then lowered his glasses revealing his intimidating brown eyes.

"Look here punk; I may not be 'Officer Riviera', but I'm the next best thing…No, it doesn't just mean a big ass ticket, it also means you've just endangered the safety of a bunch of minors, and you know what else? It means I'm charging you like an adult so get out of the car."

"But-"

"Get out of the vehicle!" Zuko looked nauseous and turned to face the others and frantically opened the RV's doors and climbed out of the car. Katara sat speechless, Aang's mouth was open in disbelief and Sokka whispered "Shit."

"So…what now?" Toph said breaking the silence.

"This is so stupid! This cop's a total prick! Five? Come on! That's like barely anything!" Sokka complained.

"He may be having a bad day," Aang whispered back, "or he's just dead serious about his job."

"He's a prick nonetheless, I mean, I'm sure Zuko and me not wearing seatbelts isn't helping the case," Katara added, "But still, I hope he lets it go, we need to get Toph help….and a map."

"The seatbelt thing is stupid," Sokka stated, "we're in an RV, he's only doing this for prick reasons; I highly doubt he'll let this go, Katara."

"Talk in whispers Sokka!" she remarked.

"Sorry."

"What's he doing now?" Toph asked; Aang looked out the window.

"Frisking Zuko," Aang replied and smiled fighting back a laugh; Sokka, on the other hand, snorted.

"Really? Man, I gotta see this!" He got up from the floor where he was sitting on to be near Toph and glanced out the window. Sure enough, the cop was frisking a miserable looking Zuko. The three in the back couldn't help it; after Sokka started busting up Aang gave up and let go of the laughter he was holding back and Toph joined in laughing in spite of her pain. The only one who didn't find it funny was Katara who was glaring at the three of them.

"This is serious!" Katara whispered, reminding them once again they should do just the same. Sokka wiped away a tear and looked at his sister.

"Oh, come on Katara, if it wasn't serious you'd be laughing too. Oh, man, I can't let this one go." Katara didn't say anything else; she just gave Sokka the hairy eye, and turned to watch again.

"You know, it's a good thing Zuko doesn't carry his knife around anymore," Sokka stated, "Wait, does he?"

"Hopefully not," Aang replied a little troubled.

"He doesn't I confiscated it a while back," Katara reassured them, "He's clear…the cop doesn't look too thrilled about that. Oh, come on!"

"What's he doing now?" Toph asked.

"Zuko's about to take a breath test! He's crazy!" Katara Shrieked.

"Not so loud," Sokka mocked; Katara glared at him again. The three who could see continued to watch the cop who was looking annoyed that Zuko really had nothing to hide. Finally, the cop was speaking sternly to Zuko, who looked drained, and finally turned him around, and brought out his cuffs restraining Zuko's hands.

"NO WAY! THAT'S NOT EVEN FAIR!" Aang cried.

"Wait, he's bringing him over!" Sokka said, pointing. The cop led Zuko to the Driver's window, where he pushed him against the car.

"Stay here," The cop ordered and walked back to his car to get something. Zuko glanced back and then leaned his head into the window.

"Okay, here's the deal, guys: Unless I have the money to pay off the ticket, like right now, I'm gonna go to jail," Zuko said glumly.

"WHAT?" Katara bellowed incredulously.

"How much are you talking," Toph demanded; Zuko flinched.

"Well, he's charging me for speeding and for every person not wearing seatbelts, which is pretty much everyone…so, it's…well," Zuko paused briefly and turned his head away, and mumbled something inaudible to the group.

"Zuko, I'm sitting right here and I can't even hear that, what did you say?" Katara inquired. He sighed.

"About 900 dollars," He choked. The group looked aghast.

"What about Toph?" Sokka said after a minute.

"Sokka, it's either this, or I go to jail." The group looked at each other and then at Toph.

"What do you think?" Sokka asked her.

"I say, that's too much," Toph retorted dryly. Before anyone can say another word the cop returned with a ticket book.

"You have the money?" He asked while writing out the ticket.

"Well," Zuko began hesitantly.

"It's okay, Zuko, take the money; my ankle can wait," Toph said in her most miserable voice. The cop turned to Toph and raised an eyebrow. The group watched Toph curiously as she ran her fingers through her bangs, revealing her pale eyes.

"What's wrong with her?" The cop asked in a different tone.

"Huh?" Toph said and turned her head the opposite direction of the cop.

"Toph, he's over here," Sokka said sympathetically, and then placed his hands on her face turning her head to face the cop. Toph's cheeks went slightly red and she smiled embarrassed.

"Sorry, sir; I feel embarrassed…you see, I'm blind; I thought you were over there."

"Oh, well, um…that's alright," the cop said uncomfortably.

"But, Toph, your ankle," Sokka said concerned, tensing his face up. She smiled sadly.

"No, he needs the money more than me," she said kindly, winced and grabbed her ankle in pain. She knew the cop was still watching, so she gave another shy smile, "Sorry, my ankle isn't good, I sprained it while walking…some mean person earlier thought it'd be funny to take my cane when I was resting, and they escaped before my friends found out. I…I tried to get up and yell at them, but I tripped over a crack in the road," she said miserably. The Gang was silent while watching Toph do her magic. Sokka put a hand on her shoulder as she forced out a tear and stared blankly into space; Sokka turned to sadly face the cop, who was starting to look slightly guilty.

"I'm sorry to hear that," the cop managed to say.

"It's not your fault; It's just unfortunate being blind…you see, my cousin, the one who was driving, he was just concerned and was rushing me to the nearest hospital; but my friend she recently discovered our map is gone and we're on vacation so I'm guessing we're lost," Toph finished and wiped her tear.

The cop sighed and looked down to the ground and scratched his head. He looked at the ticket he was writing out, "I see...Well…The nearest hospital isn't too far, just in the next city ahead; take the next exit and you'll hit Arnook County Hospital."

"Thanks you for the information, but it'll be useless considering all the money is going to the ticket...I'm just gonna have to suffer," Toph said, winced once again, and grabbed her ankle; the cop looked at her sympathetically and then at the ticket.

"I'll cut off the ticket, you'll go with a warning…I apologize for everything," he muttered, then turned to Zuko and uncuffed him, "You're free to go."

"Thanks," Zuko mumbled and rubbed his wrists. The cop patted his back and went back to his car; Zuko quickly climbed back to the driver's seat and buckled up (Katara did the same); the cop came back and tossed a map to Zuko. Katara took it and looked at the cop grinning.

"Thanks, Officer…"

"Zhao," he grumbled. Suddenly his walkie-talkie started to pick up a voice, "excuse me," he said and started listening to the message, "A teenage guy and girl speeding 95 running two red lights," he said irritated, and turned back to the RV, "catch you again and you will be punished," he stated sternly, then went back in the police car, turned on his siren and drove away. Everyone turned their eyes on Toph, who was smiling mischievously.

"Toph Beifong does it again! That was the most brilliant lie you've ever told!" Sokka said ecstatically.

"It was nothing, guilt trips always work," she replied modestly, "Man, that cop was PMSing or something." Sokka chuckled and put his hand on her shoulder.

"No, but seriously Toph, you just saved Zuko big time, all of us. It was amazing."

"It was risky," Katara remarked, turning her head from the map frowning, "I can't believe you Toph, lying to a cop, and Sokka…you joined right in! I can't believe you two!"

"Oh, come on, Katara, this is no time for your moral lectures, we saved Zuko, didn't we?" Toph said.

"And the money," Sokka added.

"Yes, but, lying to a cop? I just have the oddest feeling this will bite us in the butt later on; I don't know why but I do," Katara said displeased.

"Katara, you're worrying too much, Toph did what was necessary; I mean, would you rather I have gone to jail?" Zuko said defensively.

"Well, no, but…"

"Then what's the problem? No worries, remember?" Zuko said.

"Besides, what's done is done; we should just focus on the hospital as of now," Aang reassured. Katara looked at everyone and sighed.

"Well, okay, if you all say so," she said still sounding a bit sceptical and went back to looking at the map, "Arnook County hospital isn't too far away, we should get there in less than an hour."

"Well, then we better get going," Zuko said and placed his hand on the key.

"So you think that was Song and her boyfriend the Zhao guy set off to get?" Sokka asked.

"Maybe," Zuko said, then stopped in realization "Wait, boyfriend? You mean…"

"She was taken the whole time? Yeah, sorry Zu-Zu," Toph said bluntly. Zuko was silent.

"Zuko?" Sokka asked. He was staring at the windshield into space with his eyes narrowed and his mouth hanging agape. Aang, Sokka and Katara looked at each other while Toph raised an eyebrow; Katara leaned near Zuko and waved her hand in front of his face. After a moment he snapped back into reality and closed his mouth but kept his narrowed eyes.

"What a whore," he managed to say, and grumpily started the RV's engine.

"Well, look on the bright side, Zuko, you're back to your Emo self now," Aang said after an awkward silence. Everyone except for Zuko busted up laughing; his face just remained stormy.

"Whatever," He mumbled and started the RV, pulling it out into the open road once again.

* * *

A/N: Solembum13

Well, first of all, I can't even say how sorry I am for keeping you all waiting for my chapter (and preventing you all of your turns for so long for those waiting, which this apology is going more to). I could go into a long and dull story on what's been preventing me from putting it up sooner; but I'll sum it up and say a majority of it was school related, family related, and a small part of it being the fact I had to restart this chapter three times for stupid reasons I don't feel like going into. But please take my apology, I'm REALLY, really sorry. I hope you all don't hate me. :D

Second, I am very aware that Zhao is OOC, but he was the only character I could think of in Avatar who looked fit to be a cop (I don't know why I think this, I just do. :p) I hope you enjoyed it anyway and wasn't a waste of your time; this is the first AU Avatar writing I've done so criticism is welcome for this chapter.

Well, it's back to Superbleh11. Good luck!


	12. A note

So... Hi

Twilight Rose2 here. Sorry we haven't been updating but we've kinda hit a bump. Namely the fact that SuperBleh11 seems to have disppeared off the face of the planet. From what I know is his computer crashed but he said he'd have a new one in no time. That was about three weeks ago.

So, I'm declaring this story back up and running. We will simply be skipping SuperBleh11's chapters and moving on.

Therefore, I am up next.

Thank you for understanding.


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